


G Callen, Private Investigator

by admiralandrea



Category: NCIS: Los Angeles
Genre: Alternate Universe, Community: trope_bingo, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-09
Updated: 2018-12-09
Packaged: 2019-09-14 20:27:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16919838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/admiralandrea/pseuds/admiralandrea
Summary: Sam Hanna enlists the help of G Callen to help him find a traitor in his company. Neither of them expect it to become personal.





	G Callen, Private Investigator

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Indecent Proposal square of my Trope Bingo card. Tom Olsen is Sam's SEAL friend from a handful of eps. Bethany is all mine. Inspired by a CBS Watch photo of Chris O'Donnell in sweater, slacks and shoulder holster (with thanks to Spikedluv)

Sam Hanna sighed in frustration, when he realized that yet again, the office of G. Callen Private Investigator was in darkness. He went back down the stairs, wondering where the guy was, because his office seemed to be permanently closed. The cellphone listing Sam had for him never connected either and Sam was beginning to think the guy had gone out of business or left town. 

It was annoying, because Sam thought he would be the perfect fit for his needs. But maybe his manager was right and Sam needed to start looking for alternatives. Time was running out.

“You looking for G?” the female voice caught Sam’s attention and he turned to find a petite brunette staring at him.

“Excuse me?” he asked.

“You’re looking for G right?” the woman said. “This is the third time this week you’ve been here.”

Sam nodded. “I was looking for Callen,” he agreed. “Is he still in business?”

“I don’t know,” the woman said with a shrug. “But if you try the Fifth Avenue Diner down the street, you should be able to find out for yourself.”

“Thank you Ms..?” Sam let the woman fill in the blank.

“Anderson,” she said briskly. “If you do find G, tell him his rent is overdue.” She turned back into the accountancy office which occupied the space below Callen’s office.

Sam looked after her bemused, shaking his head. No way was he telling some guy he owed his landlord rent. He did head down the street though, looking for the diner she had mentioned. It wasn’t far and Sam stood on the opposite side of the road, looking in through the large window before heading inside. 

The diner was sparsely occupied, with an older couple at one table and some teenagers at another. Sam’s quarry was at a third, way back near the counter. G Callen was holding a folded newspaper in one hand and a cup in the other. Sam realized as he got closer that the paper was in what looked like Cyrillic. Interesting.

Sam stopped at the opposite side of the table. “G Callen?” he asked.

“Who wants to know?” the man didn’t even raise his eyes from his paper.

“Someone who would like to do business with him,” Sam told him, feeling a bit annoyed. He could see that Callen’s clothes were old and well-worn. The man himself was unshaven, with a haircut to match. He looked more like a member of a white supremacist gang than a private investigator.

Sam’s remark did get him a brief glance from the other man, before he set down his mug and turned to the waitress leaning on the counter.

“Angie, a fresh cup for me, coffee for this gentleman and two slices of pie,” he called out.

“Sure thing honey,” the waitress said, standing upright and sending a friendly smile in their direction.

“I didn’t say I wanted pie,” Sam slid into the seat opposite Callen.

“You’re not saying no,” Callen observed, as he put his paper down and finally looked at Sam properly. “And believe me, you don’t want to. Angie’s pies are baked fresh every day and are a little slice of heaven.”

Sam smiled at the enthusiasm. “If you say so.”

“Don’t worry, you’re about to find out for yourself,” Callen told him, as Angie approached their table, juggling plates, mugs and cutlery.

Sam watched as she set everything down, before picking up Callen’s empty mug. “There you go honey,” she told Callen with a warm smile.

He smiled back. “Thanks Angie,” Callen said.

Sam noticed that although he had been brought coffee, Callen’s mug contained tea. The pie was apple and steaming hot, with a scoop of ice cream on the side. It certainly smelt delicious. He forked up a mouthful and tasted it cautiously, aware that Callen was watching him closely.

The pastry was flaky, but firm, the apple not too sweet and there was a hint of cinnamon as well. Sam closed his eyes and hummed in pleasure. It was definitely the best apple pie he’d ever had. As he swallowed, Sam opened his eyes again, catching Callen staring at him, blue eyes wide and dark, tongue just licking his lips. 

As soon as he realized Sam had caught him, Callen ducked his head, but not before Sam caught a blush staining his cheeks. Sam didn’t say anything though, just reached for his mug of coffee. That was pretty good too, for diner coffee.

“You were right,” Sam said, as he set his mug back down again.

Callen looked up, expression back to casual as he raised his mug of tea.

“The pie is damn good,” Sam told him, taking another mouthful. Callen quirked a smile, but didn’t respond, reaching for his own pie instead.

They sat quietly eating for a few minutes and Sam thought it was a friendly silence. Finally, though, he was done with his pie and reached for the last of his coffee, settling back in his seat as he watched Callen finish his own piece of pie.

Before he could speak, Angie was there again, clearing their plates and refilling Sam’s mug from the coffee pot she carried. Callen watched him as Sam complimented her, clutching his tea, but not drinking it.

Eventually Angie bustled away again and they were left regarding each other cautiously.

“So why are you here?” Callen eventually broke the silence between them.

“I want to hire you,” Sam said simply.

Callen raised his eyebrows but didn’t say anything.

“You are still a private investigator aren’t you?” Sam asked.

Callen shrugged. “My license is valid, but it’s a while since I had a client,” he admitted. His casual act wasn’t fooling Sam.

“Well, I need someone and all my research suggests you’d be the ideal fit for what I have in mind,” Sam told him.

“I don’t even know your name yet,” Callen pointed out.

Sam scowled. He had been so distracted by Callen and the pie, he’d forgotten to introduce himself. “Sam Hanna,” he held out his hand to the other man.

“I knew that,” Callen told him, as he took Sam’s hand in a firm grip. Sam looked at him and Callen shrugged as he let go. “I’ve seen your picture,” he admitted.

“Right. So I wondered if we could go back to your office to discuss my proposal?” Sam asked.

Callen frowned at that, so Sam hurriedly added. “I’ll pay you for your time, even if you don’t agree to work for me.”

Callen’s expression cleared a little at that, but he still looked unhappy. “I’ve been away for a while,” he told Sam. “My office probably isn’t the best place for this.”

Sam thought it was more likely something else was going on, but he wasn’t in a position to challenge the other man. “I can arrange something short term,” he suggested.

“That sounds like a plan,” Callen agreed. “I’ll just,” he waved towards the bathrooms, so Sam nodded in understanding as he pulled out his phone to make the arrangements.

As soon as Callen had disappeared, Sam beckoned to Angie. She came over quickly. “Everything okay?” she asked.

“Absolutely fine,” Sam told her. “I just wanted to pay the bill. Everything for our table today,” he added.

Angie raised an eyebrow at that, but just nodded and pulled out her pad. Once she’d told Sam the amount, he handed over his credit card. “I’ll need a receipt, please,” he told her.

“Sure hon, be right back,” Angie told him.

Sam finished his cup of coffee while he waited for her to come back. She approached the table with Callen just behind. Sam was able to accept the receipt and slip her a bill as a tip at the same time.

“You good to go?” Sam asked Callen as he stood up.

“The bill,” Callen pointed towards Angie, who was clearing the table.

“All taken care of,” Sam assured him.

That earned him a frown, but Sam just gestured for the door. “I hope you don’t mind going down town,” he asked. “It was the only office my friend has available today.”

Callen shrugged. “Anywhere is fine by me,” he said.

*

The office Sam had arranged was in a high rise with a great view across the city. Callen wandered across to take it in while Sam set things up. 

“All ready,” Sam called to him, so Callen turned and went back to where Sam had his laptop out.

They settled side by side and Sam opened up a document on his screen. “I’ve recently started working on a project with a view to making a bid for Government contracts,” he explained. “However, I think I have someone within my company who is sabotaging things. I have security cameras installed but they’ve not shown anything so far.”

“So what do you want me to do?” Callen asked.

Sam looked at him seriously. “This is going to sound off the wall, but I hope you’ll hear me out before you decide.”

Callen was intrigued and nodded agreement.

“I want you to play my boyfriend,” Sam told him. “You would go into the office, act ignorant, get to know everyone in an attempt to please me and maybe find some stuff out while you’re at it.”

Callen felt his eyes widen in surprise at Sam’s request. It wasn’t what he’d expected at all. He sat back in his chair while he thought about what Sam had asked. For his part, Sam was sitting there patiently waiting for Callen’s reaction.

“Why do you want to go this route?” Callen finally asked. “Why not bring in more security – both staff and tech?”

Sam shook his head. “It could go one of two ways,” he said. “Either they disappear altogether for now, only to re-emerge later, when I’ve relaxed my guard or they get more creative. I don’t want whoever it is to be suspicious, I want to find them and have the authorities deal with them appropriately. That way no one else gets targeted later either.”

Callen nodded, he could understand Sam’s thinking. “So why me?” he asked. “What makes you think this is the type of job I’d be interested in taking on?”

“I’ve done my research,” Sam told him. “I looked into all the major private investigation firms in L.A. but they’re too high profile. I want someone who isn’t likely to be on anyone’s radar.”

“Okay,” Callen could acknowledge Sam was right about that. He was a barely surviving one man operation. No one in Sam’s circles would have any reason to be aware of his existence. “But why do you think I’d be willing to play your boyfriend?”

“Money,” Sam told him bluntly. “I know you’re on the verge of giving up. Hell, when I came to your office today, the woman in the accountancy told me you were overdue on your rent. I’m guessing that’s the real reason why we aren’t there right now, having this meeting.”

Callen felt himself flush at that, angry at hearing that Sarah Anderson was casually telling strangers about his financial situation. “So you think you can buy me, is that it?” he asked, shoving his chair back with a screech and standing up.

“No wait,” Sam got up as well, holding out a placatory hand. 

Callen paused and Sam carried on. “Yes, I’m asking you to pose as my boyfriend in public. In private, though, I don’t expect anything of the sort. I will pay you well for your work, which I believe you are actually good at, despite appearances. I’ve seen the cases you have solved, I know you excel in undercover work, but you’re struggling to get anyone to take you on in those sorts of cases. Nothing will happen between us that will make you uncomfortable and once we resolve this business one way or the other, we can have a big, messy, public break up if it makes you happy.” 

Callen pulled his chair back and sat down again. “I need to think about this some more,” he said.

“Of course,” Sam agreed. “Will you let me show you what information I have so far and the draft contract I’ve had my lawyer put together, in case you are willing to take this on?”

“Alright,” Callen agreed and he moved his chair closer to Sam’s, in order to see the documents Sam was opening on his laptop.

“So how is this going to work?” Callen asked, as they looked at the contract. “You suddenly showing up with a boyfriend would be a bit odd wouldn’t it?”

“I’ve been planning this for a while,” Sam admitted. “I’ve been traveling between D.C. and San Diego for meetings a lot, while I work on bidding for this contract. When I’ve been communicating with my staff back here, I’ve alluded to the fact that I’m seeing someone. So when you arrive, no one will be surprised.”

“Clever,” Callen gave an admiring nod.

Sam smirked. “Not just a pretty face.” 

Callen laughed at that. “I’ll do it,” he decided.

“You’ll take on the job?” Sam clarified.

“Yeah,” Callen nodded. He was intrigued by Sam and spending more time with him would definitely not be a hardship.

“Thank you,” Sam said, looking equal parts pleased and relieved by Callen’s decision.

Callen smiled at him. “No problem,” he said. “I think it’ll be an interesting challenge.”

“Do you want your attorney to look over the contract before you sign?” Sam asked.

Callen shook his head. “I’ve got enough knowledge to trust what you’ve put in here is reasonable,” he told Sam, deliberately not mentioning that an attorney was yet another thing he couldn’t afford right now.

“Alright,” Sam said. “Then let me call my attorney, we can go get this signed officially and set up the financial arrangements, as well as plan for your first visit to my office.”

“Sure,” Callen agreed. It wasn’t like he had any other plans for the rest of the day anyway.

*

Several hours later, everything was set. Sam’s attorney had documentation ready for him in a new identity – Alex Lewis, former Marine and computer programmer. They had gone over the various options of what role Callen could play in order to ensure he gained access to all areas of Sam’s organization and that was the best fit. It was also the one that Callen assured Sam he could play the most easily.

“I’m not a computer genius,” Callen said. “But I know enough to be able to pull it off in the situations I’ll be faced with. And I can study the specific details of your project to be able to bluff my way through.”

Sam was doubtful. “Are you sure about this?” he asked.

Callen smiled at him. “I have a photographic memory,” he said.

Sam snorted. “There’s no such thing.”

Callen kept smiling. “Not scientifically proven, no,” he agreed. “But I have taught myself to learn and retain large quantities of information in a short period of time. It’s not a permanent thing, but it is good enough to get me through this, I promise.”

Sam had remained skeptical, but had agreed to trust Callen to know what he could and couldn’t do. With that decided, they had agreed that Callen would drive to San Diego that evening, as Sam was due to arrive a couple of days later. It would give him time to learn what he needed to and then meet up with Sam for the return trip to Los Angeles, where Sam would start to introduce him to friends and business associates, as well as being seen in public together. 

“You’ll need this as well,” Sam handed over a wallet with some cash and cards, as well as ID documents.

Callen raised his eyebrows as he took in the contents, but didn’t say anything, studying the Driver’s License and Social Security card carefully. “What’s the limit on the credit card?” he asked, as he took it out of the wallet.

“That’s a company card,” Sam said. “So you don’t need to worry about that.”

Callen stared hard at him, until Sam squirmed a little. “That’s awfully trusting of you,” he finally commented.

Sam shrugged. “I trust you,” he said simply.

“Why?” Callen didn’t understand Sam’s attitude towards him, it wasn’t like the guy knew him.

“I told you, I did my research,” was all Sam would say, so Callen had to let it go. “One last thing,” he handed over details of the reservation he had arranged for Callen at a hotel in San Diego.

Callen took the paper and glanced over the information. He was pleased to see it was a mid-range hotel, not too cheap but not too fancy either. He nodded acceptance as he folded up the sheet and added it to the rest of the pile.

“I expect you to use the card to buy some new clothes,” Sam said, making Callen look up in surprise.

“I’m not dressing like a geek!” he protested.

That made Sam laugh. “I don’t expect you to,” he said quickly. “But you will need suitable business and casual clothes.” He gave Callen’s well-worn jeans and leather jacket a pointed look as he said it.

“Yeah, alright,” Callen agreed. “But I wasn’t working when you found me, these are my casual clothes.”

“I get that, but they’re not the sort of thing Alex Lewis would wear,” Sam told him.

A knock at the door of the conference room they were seated in meant Callen didn’t have a chance to say anything more in defense of his wardrobe.

“Yes?” Sam called out.

A nervous looking young man opened the door. “I have the car keys for you Mr Hanna,” he said, holding them out.

Sam beckoned him over and accepted the keys with a nod. The young man hurried back out the door again.

“Rental car,” Sam said, as he passed the keys to Callen. 

“Thanks,” Callen accepted the keys. “What is it?”

“A Mercedes SLC,” Sam told him.

Callen whistled. “That’s not a cheap car.”

“I think it fits with your role,” Sam said. “Sporty but not too flashy.”

“As long as it’s not red,” Callen said with a laugh.

Sam laughed as well. “No, it’s dark blue, much more Alex’s style.”

Callen nodded approval. “Does this mean I’m good to go?” he asked.

“I’d say so,” Sam said. “But let’s have dinner before you get on the road. We do have something else to discuss still.”

Callen looked up from where he’d been putting everything together in the folder Sam had given him. “What’s that?” he asked a touch warily.

“The personal side of things,” Sam said simply. “We need to establish some ground rules around how we’re going to behave in public together, that sort of thing.”

Callen nodded agreement. That made sense. He stood up with Sam. “Where we eating?” he asked.

“Somewhere quiet, where no one is going to know either of us,” Sam replied. “A little Italian place I know in Long Beach.” 

“Sounds good,” Callen said. “I’ll follow you, then I can get on the road as soon as we’re done.”

Sam agreed with that and they headed out of the conference room, saying their goodbyes to Sam’s attorney as they left.

*

Three days later, Sam eventually got to San Diego. Another problem had sprung up with his company which he’d had to deal with before he could leave Los Angeles. He’d stayed in touch with Callen via email and a couple of brief phone calls in that time and the other man had assured him he was fine.

Now, as he walked into the hotel lobby with his head of engineering beside him, he caught sight of Callen waiting for them.

“Definitely fine,” he muttered to himself, as he took in Callen’s appearance. The other man wore a cream colored sweater and pale gray slacks and looked a lot smarter than when Sam had last seen him. He’d gotten a haircut as well and was even clean shaven.

Tom nudged him none too gently. “You look like you swallowed your tongue,” his old friend said.

Sam gave him a relatively mild glare for the shove. “I don’t know what you mean,” he insisted.

Tom just smirked, knowing Sam better than that. “Are you going to introduce us or what?” he asked.

Sam sighed, already regretting this. But he’d had to let Tom know what was going on and he trusted the other man, having been teamed up with him throughout their time in the SEALS.

Callen was sitting at a table, looking at a newspaper, cup of what Sam guessed would be tea in front of him, giving no sign of having noticed them. Sam knew it was unlikely that he was that oblivious, but he was playing the part well.

“Come on then,” Sam said reluctantly, heading over to Callen, Tom following close behind. 

As soon as they were close enough, Callen looked up and caught sight of them. His face transformed into a smile and he tossed aside his paper, standing up hurriedly.

“Sam!” he said the word with a slightly breathless tone and quickly threw his arms around Sam in a hug, which was strong but brief.

Sam barely had time to react before Callen had pulled back and then quickly pressed a sadly equally brief kiss to Sam’s mouth. He then turned to Tom with a more professional looking smile on his face.

“You must be Tom,” he said, holding out his hand.

Sam watched them exchange a quick shake and Tom said hello. He was amazed at the other man’s transformation.

“Good to see you Alex,” Sam finally managed to say, dropping his briefcase on to a sofa beside the table. 

Callen turned the full wattage of his smile back on Sam, making him feel things he wasn’t expecting. “I’ve missed you,” he said simply.

“Me too,” Sam admitted, smiling as well, ignoring the stupid noises Tom was making behind him.

“Are you ready to go to lunch?” Callen asked.

“Sure,” Sam nodded agreement and picked his briefcase up again. “Did you make reservations for us?”

Callen quickly folded up his paper and picked up his own briefcase, which Sam hadn’t noticed before. “I did,” he said. “Not in the restaurant here, though, I hope you don’t mind?”

Sam shook his head as he fell into step with Callen, who promptly slid an arm around his waist. Sam felt his eyebrows go up, but otherwise managed not to react. The heat of Callen’s body alongside his own felt good. 

*

Over the next couple of days, Sam felt himself falling for Callen. Or was it Alex? They’d agreed that he would maintain the undercover persona for the entire trip, not wanting to risk getting caught out. Callen played the part to perfection. He met with several members of the team working on the project Sam was hoping to sign up to and interacted easily with all of them. He had clearly learned his stuff on the computer side, chatting away effortlessly to the head of the project. Sam couldn’t help but be impressed by him and Tom felt the same way, saying as much to Sam when it was just the two of them during a lull in one of the meetings. 

Once the meetings were done, it was time for the drive back to Los Angeles. Tom had agreed to take Callen’s rental car on the return journey, so he could travel back with Sam. It made Sam groan a little at the thought of two or more hours alone in a car with the other man. He was going to have to work hard to stay in control and remember this was just a role for Callen, albeit one he was clearly embracing.

*

Once they were back in Los Angeles, Callen had to move into Sam’s home. He was apprehensive, because he’d never lived with anyone as an adult, on top of his erratic sleeping habits. Thankfully, Sam had agreed that he would have his own room in Sam’s condo. There was no need for them to maintain the ruse when it was just the two of them. 

Callen was glad Sam had understood that he would need some space, where he could be himself, away from the case and Sam’s office. Callen needed the opportunity to remember who he was, that Alex was a separate person, who didn’t really exist. Already he was finding it a struggle to keep them apart and not let Alex’s feelings and behaviors bleed over into the home side of the life he’d fallen into with Sam.

It didn’t help that Callen had felt instant attraction when he’d first met Sam. He’d already known who the other man was when Sam had approached him in the diner, even though he’d pretended not to. Callen had several security programs set up that let him know when someone was researching his business and Sam had triggered those alarms. He had also gone beyond the basic search most of Callen’s prospective clients stuck to, which had set off personal alarms for Callen.

He had therefore done his own research in turn, wanting to find out just why someone like Sam would be interested in a down on his luck private investigator. Although Callen had found out plenty about Sam’s business and his life before that as a Navy SEAL, it hadn’t prepared him for Sam’s proposition.

It hadn’t really taken much thought on his part for Callen to agree, though. He was already curious about Sam and eager to get to know him better. What he hadn’t banked on was how quickly he would develop feelings for the other man that went beyond just basic lust or attraction. It meant he had to stick rigidly to the ground rules they had set up in the days before Sam had arrived in San Diego, when they’d been exchanging emails while Sam dealt with another issue in Los Angeles. Callen had to make sure he didn’t compromise Sam or his business over his inability to control his hormones.

That wasn’t easy though, when they arrived at Sam’s company headquarters and he was taken to meet the head of security for a pass and to sign a stack of paperwork. Callen bent over the table, reading and signing a pile of forms – NDA’s, security regulations and various other things. He had to fight not to glaze over and make sure he properly took in everything he was reading and agreeing to. Plus, he had to make sure he remembered to sign as Alex, not Callen. Though he did wonder just how valid the legality of the documents was, when they were signed in an alias name.

After a while, everything had gone quiet behind him, where Sam was waiting with Bethany, the rather surprising but impressive head of security. She was a tall, blonde, Brit with a cut glass accent. But Sam had assured him that she had all the necessary qualifications for the role, including a past in the British Secret Service.

“So Sam,” Callen heard her say, as he continued to skim through yet another document, glad he was finally getting towards the end of the giant stack.

“Yeah Bet,” Sam replied and Callen frowned to himself, as neither of them could see him. Bet seemed an odd choice of diminutive.

“You and Alex,” he heard her say and he paused, waiting for her next line, guessing it was going to be interesting from her tone of voice.

“What about me and Alex?” Sam asked, sounding wary. He’d clearly picked up on the mischief in her question as well.

“You obviously like him a lot,” Bethany said. “You haven’t stopped staring at his arse for the last ten minutes.”

Callen fought not to laugh, as he heard Sam make a choking sound from behind him. At the same time, he was intrigued by Bethany’s comment. Sam had shown no signs to Callen of being interested in him, which was why Callen had carefully restrained his own burgeoning feelings towards the other man. Particularly as thing were complicated by the not so small matter of Callen being paid by Sam, making it technically a boss-employee relationship.

Callen finished signing the last document, noting that Sam hadn’t replied to Bethany’s observation. He straightened with a groan, back aching from being bent over for so long.

“All done,” he announced, turning to Bethany as he said it.

She smiled at him and stepped up to start checking through everything, so Callen turned to Sam, who had a neutral expression on his face. Callen raised an eyebrow at him. Sam managed a smile in return, but it was just as well Bethany wasn’t watching, because she would have been instantly suspicious, given how good at her job she clearly was.

“Do I get the tour now?” he asked casually, acting as though he hadn’t heard the earlier by-play.

Sam looked relieved at the out and nodded. “Sure, as long as Bet is happy,” he agreed.

“Everything looks good,” she confirmed. “You just need an ID badge and you’re good to go.” 

“Great, I can’t wait to see this place!” Callen gave her an enthusiastic smile, as she handed him the badge on a lanyard. She’d obviously been prepared for his arrival, because it had a recent photo of him on it already.

“Have fun boys,” she said with a grin. “I look forward to hearing what you think later Alex,” she added with a wink.

Callen grinned back, while Sam just gave a groan and rolled his eyes. “Let’s go,” he said and gestured towards the door. 

With a quick nod to Bethany, Callen headed out the door, giving a wiggle of the hips as he did so. Sam groaned again, while Bethany just laughed behind them. Callen called it a win. He was fairly sure there was no way she would suspect anything was off with the story about his identity and he was also sure that she wasn’t involved in whatever was going on at the company. Sam had already said he thought the same, but was trusting Callen to confirm his own impressions of his staff.

*

That evening, back at Sam’s condo, they discussed the day together over an excellent dinner that Sam had cooked, much to Callen’s surprise.

“I enjoy cooking,” Sam explained. “It’s a good way for me to relax and unwind at the end of the day.”

Callen raised his hands. “I’m not objecting,” he said hastily. “I’m sure it makes the ladies swoon.”

Sam pulled a face at that, but didn’t reply, instead turning to pull ingredients from a cabinet. Callen raised an eyebrow, as he settled on a stool at the bar. He knew Sam had had both male and female partners in the past, from his research. It seemed like there might be a story there, but he wasn’t in a position to pry.

As he watched, Sam selected a bottle of wine and opened it, pouring them both a generous glassful. He handed Callen’s over, brushing their fingers together as he did so. Callen bit back a gasp at the slight contact, feeling as though something had passed between them. Sam seemed oblivious though. He immediately turned away again, this time going to the fridge for more ingredients.

After dinner, Sam brought a bottle of scotch to the lounge area, where Callen had settled in a corner of Sam’s incredibly comfortable couch. He was feeling relaxed and mellow after a good meal and the easy conversation they’d enjoyed, ranging over sports and popular culture, once Sam had decided the business portion of the day was over.

They’d found a shared love of basketball and seventies cartoons, but Callen had admitted to not really liking football or anything water-related. Sam had seemed disappointed by that, but had changed the subject to languages instead, where they had discovered they both spoke a good half dozen each, though there wasn’t a lot of overlap.

As Sam set the glasses down, he reached for a remote control and pressed a button. Music started playing, something jazz Callen guessed. He fought not to grimace. It was another thing they didn’t agree on, but this was Sam’s home, so he wasn’t going to protest. 

“Here,” Sam got his attention, holding out a glass of the scotch to him.

Callen smiled as he accepted it, making sure their fingers brushed again. This time, he definitely caught a reaction from Sam, because he was looking closely for it. He felt his own face heat in response and quickly ducked his head, not wanting to make Sam uncomfortable.

Sam surprised him though, by sitting in the middle of the couch, close to him, rather than in the opposite corner. They both stayed quiet as they sipped their drinks and Callen felt himself relax even more, letting his eyes close as he enjoyed the unusual sensation of not feeling on edge or in a hurry to go somewhere.

An indeterminate time later, Callen felt a hand brush against his and he startled, eyes opening. Sam was leaning close and Callen inhaled sharply, not expecting it.

“You were about to drop this,” Sam told him, holding up his glass of scotch.

Callen blinked in surprise. He’d almost drifted off to sleep, sitting there on Sam’s couch. “Sorry,” he muttered.

Sam smiled at him. “No need to apologize,” he said. “It was a pretty intense day for you.”

“Still, bit rude to fall asleep like that,” Callen said. He rubbed at his eyes, still feeling more asleep than awake.

Sam kept smiling, his expression fond. “I honestly don’t mind G,” he said. One hand reached out and brushed across his face gently, there and gone in a few seconds.

Callen felt a jolt of surprise and something else flash through him at the light touch. He fought to clamp down on his reaction to Sam’s touch. Sam’s brown eyes were warm as they watched him and suddenly Callen decided to hell with it, he was going to take a chance. He didn’t think Sam would hit him, although he would probably let him down gently. It was worth the risk though.

Leaning forward slowly, Callen moved closer to Sam and watched the other man’s eyes flutter closed. Feeling daring, Callen pressed his mouth to Sam’s, his own eyes sliding closed at the first gentle contact of their lips. Making a noise in his throat, he licked across Sam’s mouth, enjoying the other man’s taste.

For a second, there was nothing, then Sam was making his own groaning noise and Callen felt his head held gently but firmly, as Sam kept their mouths pressed together. His tongue swept across Callen’s mouth and Callen opened up, happy to let Sam taste him. 

This time, they both moaned and the kiss quickly got more heated, as Sam’s tongue started mapping Callen’s mouth and Callen reached out to grab Sam’s shoulder for support. He gripped the firm muscle tightly, breathing hard through his nose as their tongues tangled together.

Sam pulled at Callen and moved backwards on the couch, so that he was lying down, with Callen stretched out on top of him. Callen went willingly, enjoying the feel of Sam’s hard body and the way their cocks pressed together, both of them hard in their pants. They kept kissing, hands roving each other’s bodies, though neither of them moved to take any clothes off.

Sam slid a hand up under Callen’s shirt, pressing down on his back and Callen moaned as it brought their dicks into firm contact. Sam’s other hand came down to palm his ass and Callen bit at Sam’s shoulder through his shirt, suddenly close to coming in his pants.

“Yeah G,” Sam said roughly, somehow able to push up beneath Callen, making him moan again at the show of strength.

Feeling desperate now, Callen thrust down against Sam, grunting as he did so. Sam’s hands on his body encouraged him to keep moving and they were rubbing together without any finesse at all. Callen was breathing hard, hot and sweaty from the movements of their bodies against one another.

Sam’s hand moved from resting on his back to wrap around him and hold him in place as their frantic thrusting continued. Callen moaned as Sam bit at the side of his neck and squeezed his ass tightly. 

“Come for me G,” Sam demanded and with a shout, Callen did exactly that, yelling loudly as he shook apart from the force of his orgasm.

Sam was still thrusting up underneath him and then he too was crying out and Callen knew he was coming as well, wetness seeping between them through their clothes. Callen was limp against Sam, spent and exhausted from the last few minutes and the strength of his coming. Sam’s arm was still around him, fingers gently stroking his arm as their breathing slowly returned to normal. 

“Well,” Sam said after a long period of silence. He didn’t say anything else though.

Callen grimaced a little, not sure how to take the single word. He levered himself up off Sam’s body, missing the warmth immediately, but feeling the need for some distance.

“Where you going?” Sam asked, as Callen shifted backwards on the couch.

Callen gestured to his pants and the large wet stain on the front. “I need to clean up,” he said.

Sam frowned at his own stained pants. “Yeah,” he agreed. “We should shower.”

“You can go first,” Callen told him, as he carefully stood up, still feeling a little shaky in the aftermath.

“What?” Sam’s surprised tone got his attention and he looked up.

“Host’s privilege?” Callen suggested.

“I was rather hoping we might share,” Sam told him, staring back at Callen.

“Oh!” Callen was surprised in turn by Sam’s suggestion.

Sam reached out to take his hand, standing in front of him. “There is no way this was a one-off G,” he said firmly. 

Callen blushed at that, not expecting Sam to have guessed the direction his thoughts had immediately taken him. He was too used to not being wanted by other people beyond a quick fuck; that Sam felt differently was something he wasn’t emotionally prepared for.

“Come on, I’ll wash your back,” Sam told him, pulling him into a quick kiss, then putting an arm around his waist. “And then you can try sleeping in my bed tonight.”

Callen felt himself tense up at that. Sam immediately stopped their journey towards the bathroom, turning to look at him.

“What?” he asked softly.

Callen hung his head, biting his lip, reminded again why he didn’t do relationships. “I don’t sleep, remember?” he told Sam. 

It was something he’d felt obliged to tell Sam the first night at dinner and Sam had been understanding, accepting his need for space and letting him spend their nights in San Diego on the couch of their hotel room.

“We can work something out G,” Sam said now. “Just, let’s have a shower and take it from there, okay?”

“Okay,” he agreed quietly.

Sam smiled at him and pulled him into a long, soft kiss and Callen opened to him quickly, loving Sam’s taste. He wasn’t sure how things were going to work out between them, with this new aspect of their relationship, but he was willing to give it a try.

*

Sam guided Callen into the shower and turned the water on. He reached for the shower gel and Callen held out a hand, but Sam shook his head. Callen raised an eyebrow, but didn’t object. Sam smiled and poured some of the liquid into his hand.

“Let me do this G,” he said softly and Callen nodded agreement, so Sam stepped in close and started to wash him.

Callen sighed as Sam’s hands slid easily across his body, his touch firm but gentle, as he worked to get Callen clean. It wasn’t enough to arouse him again yet, but it did feel good to have someone pay such close attention to him. Sam kissed each scar as he reached it and Callen thought that maybe one day, he’d be able to tell Sam the stories of how he gotten each one.

Sam didn’t linger when he got to Callen’s groin, but Callen was slowly starting to feel turned on again anyway. Sam moved around him and washed his legs and back, then put a hand on Callen’s ass. He managed not to flinch, but Sam just stayed there for a minute, before massaging the muscles firmly. Callen moaned at that, liking Sam’s hands on him. Fingers dipped between his cheeks all to briefly, then Sam was guiding him to stand under the spray of water.

Once he was clean, Callen took the shower gel from Sam. “My turn,” he said firmly.

Sam raised his eyebrow at that, but didn’t object. “Sure,” he agreed with a smile, leaning in to give Callen a quick kiss.

Callen took his time, enjoying the easy way Sam relaxed and let himself be washed. He started with Sam’s back and then moved on to his arms and chest. He took his turn at cataloguing each of Sam’s scars with a kiss, hoping he would trust Callen with his stories one day too.

Finally, Callen dropped to his knees in front of Sam, quickly washing each leg and foot in turn, before getting to his groin. He was face to face with Sam’s half-hard cock now and licked his lips. It was impressive and he wondered what it would feel like to be fucked by Sam. For the moment though, he wanted to taste and bent to lick across the head.

“G,” Sam’s tone was strangled and one hand landed on the top of his head.

Callen leaned back and looked up into Sam’s eyes. “Let me?” he asked.

Sam stared back at him, before nodding agreement. Callen grinned, then without breaking eye contact, slid his mouth down the length of Sam’s cock, taking in the whole thing.

“Fuck!” Sam exclaimed and his hand came around to touch Callen’s cheek. 

Callen waited to see what he would do, but Sam just stood there, still staring down at him. So Callen closed his eyes and hummed, hearing Sam mutter another curse, before he moved to cradle Callen’s skull again. Pulling back, Callen let Sam’s cock pop free. He looked up again and Sam was watching him closely still.

“Fuck my mouth,” Callen said.

Sam’s eyes widened in surprise at that, but Callen saw his cock twitch out of the corner of his eye. Sam definitely liked that idea. Callen kept his gaze steady, allowing Sam to see just how much he wanted this.

Eventually, he seemed to be convinced and he tilted Callen’s head, before guiding his cock to Callen’s mouth. Callen felt his own cock twitch and he opened his mouth, watching Sam’s cock slide forwards, until he almost went cross-eyed and blinked. 

Closing his eyes, Callen relaxed his throat and breathed in deeply through his nose. Sam’s grip on his head tightened, holding him in place, not that Callen was interested in trying to move. Sam traced the length of his cock on Callen’s face again, then rested on his throat.

Callen just waited patiently and at last, Sam started to move, fucking in and out of his mouth with firm strokes. Sam sped up after only a few thrusts, grunting as he did so. Callen kept his hands on his thighs, breathing through his nose as Sam’s cock hammered his throat. His own dick was hard and aching, but he was happy to ignore it for now. 

Sam’s grip on the back of his head tightened, while he moved his other hand from Callen’s throat to grab his shoulder instead. He was thrusting even faster now, grunting louder and louder, until he was coming with a shout and Callen was swallowing bitter liquid.

Eventually Sam let go and pulled back from Callen, who groaned a little. Then Sam was on his knees in front of him, grabbing Callen into a rough kiss, while taking a firm hold of his throbbing cock. Callen moaned around Sam’s tongue in his mouth, immediately on the edge of coming.

It only took a few firm pulls on his cock and Callen was coming, shaking in Sam’s arms, as he fell apart. Sam kept his arms around him, rubbing his back, as he slowly came back down to earth. Callen lifted his head and Sam tilted his, allowing their mouths to meet in a much gentler kiss.

After a while, Sam pulled back and they got to their feet shakily, still holding on to each other. Sam reached to turn the water off and guided Callen out of the cubicle with a hand on his back. They dried themselves off quickly with warm fluffy towels, then Sam’s hand was back on him again to lead him into the bedroom.

Callen yawned widely, feeling spent and tired, but in a good way. He didn’t think he’d ever felt so relaxed and thought he might even sleep for a while. Sam settled him in bed first, then climbed in beside him and Callen snuggled up to him, enjoying the heat and closeness of his body. They shared one last, brief kiss and then Callen allowed the darkness to rise up and claim him. 

*

Sam was propped up on one elbow, watching Callen as he slowly woke up.

“Morning sleepyhead,” he said with a grin.

Callen blinked and rubbed at his eyes, making Sam’s grin widen. “Morning,” he finally muttered.

“So all that not sleeping thing?” Sam said. “I call bullshit.”

Callen blinked, clearly not really awake. “What?” 

“You’ve just slept six hours,” Sam informed him.

Callen shook his head, clearly confused. “Really?” he asked.

Sam was smirking now. Callen only managing one word at a time was kind of cute, although he wasn’t stupid enough to tell the other man that. He moved so that Callen could see the alarm clock on the nightstand behind him, watching Callen’s eyes widen in surprise as he registered the time. 

Callen flopped back on the bed and rubbed at his face. “Crazy,” he said.

Sam smirked some more. “Either you were lying or I’m just that good,” he said, highly amused by Callen’s reaction.

Callen turned his head and glared at him. “I wasn’t lying,” he protested. “I’ve never slept that much in one night before.”

Sam raised his hands. “Okay man, I believe you,” he said, dropping the amused act in the face of Callen’s protest. He didn’t really think the other man had been lying.

Callen sat up, shoving a pillow behind his back. “I guess I felt safe,” he said quietly.

Sam couldn’t help the little thrill of excitement he got at hearing that. To be considered safe by Callen seemed like a big deal. 

“I’m glad,” Sam said simply. 

Callen stared at him for a while and Sam fought not to squirm. He got the impression he was being judged on how sincere he was and wanted Callen to realize he was serious. 

Eventually Callen reached out a hand to Sam, who clasped it in his own.

“Thank you,” he told Sam.

Sam smiled. “No problem. Now what do you want to do? We don’t have to get up this early.” He gave an exaggerated leer as he said it, making it clear to Callen what he wanted.

Callen laughed and tugged him forward into a kiss. Sam went willingly, happy to get acquainted with Callen’s taste again, morning breath be damned.

 

*

Later, after Sam had fucked him for the first time and they’d had a nap, then shared hand jobs in the shower, Callen settled gingerly on a stool at Sam’s bar. Sam was making pancakes for breakfast while Callen watched. He’d admitted to Sam the evening before that he couldn’t cook and although he’d joked about making women swoon, Sam knew he’d been impressed.

“You want a pillow?” Sam asked, watching Callen squirm as he tried to get comfortable on the bar stool.

Callen looked up and gave a wry smile. “I’m okay,” he said. 

“You sure?” Sam gave him a long look.

“Honestly, I’m fine Sam,” Callen insisted. “I expected to be sore, I can take it.”

Sam decided to take him at his word and turned to set up the coffee maker. “You want tea?” he asked over his shoulder.

“Yes please,” Callen said. He’d brought a few different boxes with him when he’d moved in and Sam had been happy to give him space in a cabinet to store them. 

Sam opened the cabinet now to look at the colorful boxes. “Which one?” he asked.

“The English Breakfast tea,” Callen told him.

Sam grunted, he guessed that made sense. He reached for the box and handed it over to Callen, along with the tray of things that Callen had brought to make it, then filled the kettle that Callen had also brought with him and set it on the stove.

They were quiet as they worked, which Sam liked. He didn’t see the need for endless chatter and neither did Callen. The silence was comfortable, as Sam mixed the pancake batter and made a fruit salad for them to share.

As they ate, Callen finally broke the silence between them.

“Do you have to go to the office today?” he asked.

Sam looked up. “Wanting to play hooky already?” he asked half-jokingly.

Callen shook his head, serious. “I want to do some research into some of your staff and I figured it would be better if I didn’t do that on a computer connected to your network. Bethany is obviously very security conscious and I don’t want her getting suspicious before you’re ready to confide in her.”

Sam nodded his understanding of what Callen had said, thinking about it. He wasn’t ready to let Bet in on his investigation just yet, not when all he had was a few nebulous suspicions. Better to wait until he had something a little more concrete before enlisting her help. 

“I can call in and let my staff know I’m working from home today,” Sam agreed. “But be prepared for teasing when we do show up again. Bet can be merciless and Tom will definitely give us a hard time.”

Callen smiled. “I don’t mind,” he said. “I’ve had my fair share of abuse over the years. Friendly teasing will be a pleasant contrast.”

“Alright then, I’ll make the call to let Tom know, he can inform everyone else.” Sam stood up and cleared their breakfast dishes away.

“I’ll wash up,” Callen volunteered. 

Sam grinned. “You know how to load a dishwasher?” he asked.

Callen rolled his eyes. “I meant actual washing of dishes by my own hands,” he said. “But if you want to waste water and electricity having a machine do it, sure, why not?”

Sam laughed at that. “My dishwasher has the highest efficiency rating,” he said. “But if you prefer to do it yourself, knock yourself out.” 

Callen muttered to himself, but Sam couldn’t hear what he said. Sam noticed that he was loading the dishwasher though and grinned as he grabbed his cellphone to call his head of engineering.

*

Over the next couple of weeks, Callen spent most of his time working from Sam’s condo, carrying out in-depth research on his employees. He quickly zeroed in on the two people he thought were mostly likely to be involved in stealing proprietary information after a visit to the factory where manufacturing was carried out. Tom had escorted him on that occasion, as Sam was stuck meeting with suppliers at his main office.

Finally, Callen presented all the evidence to Sam and he agreed that they should loop in Bethany at that point, in order to decide how to get the two people involved to admit to what they’d done and how to proceed with notifying the relevant authorities.

Sam decided the best course of action was to invite Bethany to dinner, along with Tom, who was already in the know. Callen agreed, although he was wary of how the head of security would react to the truth about his identity and what he’d been doing. 

Half an hour before Tom and Bethany were due to arrive, Callen was fidgeting around the apartment. Sam watched him from where he was putting the finishing touches to dinner and decided he needed to take action.

“You’re going to wear holes in the rugs if you keep that up,” he told Callen, who looked up startled.

“What?” he asked, fiddling with the bottom of his sweater before quickly finishing the wine left in his glass.

Sam raised his eyebrows at that. Callen wasn’t really a big drinker, especially of wine. Time for drastic action. He finished stirring his pot of sauce and carefully lowered the burner, then headed over to where Callen had stopped next to his picture window.

“Relax G, it’ll be fine,” he said gently, turning the other man towards him.

Callen frowned. “You don’t know that,” he protested.

Sam sighed and pulled him forward into a kiss. It took a minute, but Callen eventually relaxed and accepted the press of Sam’s mouth against his. 

“Come here,” Sam tugged him back over towards the couch. “I know just what you need right now.”

Callen looked like he was going to argue, so Sam kissed him again, before pushing him down onto the cushions. Callen was wide-eyed, but not protesting, so Sam knelt in front of him.

Callen started to say something again, so Sam leaned forward and pressed their mouths together once more, while reaching out to squeeze his cock through his pants. That made Callen moan and he bucked up under Sam’s hand.

Sam quickly unfastened Callen’s pants and pulled back from the kiss. Callen moaned in disappointment, eyes dark with lust as he stared at Sam. 

“Let me suck you baby,” Sam said, voice gone rough with desire.

“God yeah,” Callen agreed.

Sam lowered his head to Callen’s groin, rubbing his half-hard cock through his boxers, before sucking the head through the material. Callen put one hand on Sam’s shoulder as he spread his legs to give Sam room to move closer.

Sam coaxed his cock through the slit in the material, sucking on the head as came into view. Callen groaned and squeezed his shoulder. Sam knew they didn’t have long, so he went for fast and dirty, sucking hard, then quickly swallowing down the length of Callen’s cock.

Callen made appreciative noises above him, he was always vocal during love making, leaving Sam in no doubt as to how he felt about what was happening. Sam loved his responsiveness and rewarded it by giving the other man the things he enjoyed the most.

The blow job was enough to leave Sam hard in his own pants and he reached down to rub at himself, before fumbling his fly open, so he could get a hand on himself as he continued to bob on Callen’s cock.

“Sam,” the gasped moan of his name and a tightening of Callen’s hand on his shoulder was all the indication he needed that the other man was coming and soon Sam was swallowing bitter liquid. He made sure to get it all, before finally pulling back, breathless and hard to the point of desperate himself.

Callen pushed him backwards and before Sam could process what was happening, he was thumping to his knees and swallowing down Sam’s cock in one fast move. Sam shouted, hitting the floor as Callen sucked hard. He gave a passing thought to the fact he was lucky the apartment below his was empty before he was bucking upwards and coming hard, while Callen made greedy noises around his cock.

Just when it got to the point where he was getting to sensitive, Callen let his cock go, before slumping over Sam’s body.

“Wow!” Callen was still breathless as he said it, chuckling a little as he rested his head on Sam’s stomach.

Sam just grunted, not quite up to words yet. The oven timer dinged at that point, making them both jump and groan. Callen moved away, shifting awkwardly to his knees and Sam missed the heat of his body immediately. He forced himself upwards as well and they dragged each other upright.

Callen tugged him into a long, thorough kiss, until Sam reluctantly pulled away. “Dinner,” he muttered when Callen gave him a disgruntled look.

“Yeah, okay,” he agreed, then checked his watch. “Shit, ten minutes till they get here,” he added.

Sam groaned and headed to the kitchen, praying nothing was ruined. He just hoped that their little interlude had helped Callen to relax before their guests arrived.

Sam washed his hands at the kitchen sink, while Callen disappeared towards the bathroom. As Sam checked the oven, he heard the text alert on his phone, but had to leave it while he made sure dinner wasn’t burned.

When he heard Callen reappear he called out to him. “Can you check that text on my phone?”

“It’s Tom,” Callen said a few moments later. “They’re stuck in traffic, running about ten minutes late.”

Sam snorted. “Typical L.A. traffic,” he muttered.

Callen appeared at his elbow as Sam stirred the sauce again. “Anything I can do?” he asked.

Sam snorted again. “Pour more wine,” he said without looking up. “I know about your kitchen prowess remember?”

Callen didn’t say anything, not able to deny the fact that on the one memorable occasion Sam asked him to help, he had managed to burn water. He could wield a corkscrew though and Sam listened to him doing just that as he carefully set out their meals, before covering each plate and putting them in the oven to keep warm.

He finally looked up as Callen held out a glass of wine to him. “You changed,” he said in surprise.

Callen looked sheepish. “Messed up my sweater,” he admitted.

Sam grinned at that. He noticed that Callen had put on Sam’s favorite shirt as well, a blue silk one that he thought matched the other man’s eyes. Not that he was stupid enough to say that to Callen, who got oddly defensive when Sam complimented him in any way.

The intercom buzzed before Sam could say anything and Callen jumped a little. Sam shook his head at the sign of nerves as he went to answer the door. There was nothing more he could do now anyway, he just hoped that Bet didn’t get too angry at their deception.

*

Dinner went smoothly, Bet in particular enthusing over Sam’s cooking skills. He caught Callen smirking at him, obviously remembering the comment he’d made to Sam that first night about women swooning over men who could cook.

“So why did you invite us here?” Tom asked, as they settled in the living area after dinner, each with a fresh drink in hand.

Callen had switched to water, claiming it was in solidarity with Bet who was designated driver but Sam guessed it was because he was worried about using the alcohol to calm his nerves and drinking too much. The shift in expression at Tom’s question suggested he was now regretting that choice.

“We have something to tell you,” Sam said.

“You’re getting married?” Bet asked excitedly.

Sam did a double take at that and Callen choked on his water. He just about managed not to spit it everywhere, but Sam had to pat him on the back for a minute to make sure he was alright. Bet apologized several times.

“It’s alright,” Callen said eventually, as Sam brought him a small shot of vodka, which the other man took with a grateful smile.

“No, we’re not getting married,” Sam added, just in case that wasn’t clear. “This is something work related.”

“Go on.” Tom had stayed out of the mess, biding his time, although Sam had known he’d bring it up again as soon as things calmed down. 

“We wanted you to know that we’ve uncovered two members of staff who are stealing from the company,” Callen quickly explained.

“How did you manage that?” Bet demanded.

Callen got up and walked over to the window. He turned his back on the view though, facing Bet instead. Sam wondered why he felt the need to create that distance. It wasn’t like Bet was going to attack him.

“My name isn’t really Alex Lewis,” Callen said in a quiet voice. “I’m really a private investigator who Sam hired to help him.”

“What!” They all winced at Bet’s angry shriek, even Tom.

Callen leaned back against the wall, affecting a nonchalance that Sam knew was a sham. He didn’t say anything else, instead looking to Sam to continue the explanation.

“Look Bet, I didn’t know who I could trust,” Sam told her. 

“Including me?” she quickly interrupted.

“At first,” Sam admitted. “But Callen didn’t take long to clear you of any involvement.”

“Callen, that’s your real name?” she asked, standing up and advancing on him.

Callen winced and nodded. Sam and Tom both stood up and Sam could see that his old friend looked just as wary as he did, wondering what Bet’s next move was going to be. They were both ready to intervene if necessary. Sam wondered if his earlier assessment was wrong, although he didn’t think violence was Bet’s style, she was former British Intelligence and was more than capable of physical action if required.

“So what about your relationship with Sam?” she demanded. “Is that all a lie too?” She paused just in front of Callen, who Sam could see was clearly uncomfortable with her closeness.

“No,” he said, trying to draw Bet’s attention away from his partner. “To start with, it was a cover, but it didn’t take long before it became real.”

Bet turned to study him, no doubt judging his sincerity and Sam returned her stare with an even look. He wasn’t fazed by her scrutiny and he knew that she could see his feelings for Callen if she was paying proper attention.

“Alright,” she finally said and took a few steps away from Callen. 

Sam hurried over to draw Callen into his arms, giving him a brief kiss, before turning to Bet. “It was an odd beginning, but we love each other,” he said firmly.

Callen gave a small start at that and Sam guessed he hadn’t been expecting a declaration like that from him. That made him sad, Callen expected so little and seemed to be full of doubts about their relationship, despite Sam’s attempts at reassurance. It made him wonder at his lover’s past, that he could be so insecure. 

“So what now?” Tom asked, as they all settled back into their seats. He gave no indication that he already knew the truth about Callen’s identity or purpose.

Callen picked up the shot glass Sam had given him and downed the vodka in a quick motion. “We have to decide how to proceed,” he said as he put the glass back on the coffee table.

Bet nodded her understanding and Sam finally felt himself relax again, knowing that she was now on board and would help them decide what to do next.

*

The four of them spent several hours going over all of Callen’s evidence, before debating who to hand the information over to, in order for the perpetrators to be arrested. They’d quickly agreed it was more a federal matter than a local law enforcement one. Bet was arguing for the FBI, but Tom and Sam were more inclined to go to NCIS.

“NCIS?” Callen asked.

“Naval Criminal Investigative Service,” Tom said. “It makes sense, this is in relation to a Navy project after all.”

Sam nodded his agreement. Bet looked like she wanted to argue, but didn’t, instead looking to Callen for his views.

Callen just shrugged. “It’s your company,” he pointed out. “You know what’s best.”

“NCIS it is then,” Sam decided. 

Tom groaned. “Does this mean we can go home now?” he asked. “I want my bed.”

Sam laughed at that. “You’re getting old man,” he teased. “Time was we’d go all day and night, then go for a five mile swim before breakfast the next day.”

“That was when I was a hell of a lot younger and had two fully functioning legs,” Tom shot back quickly.

Sam immediately sobered at that, eyes dark as he studied his friend. “Yeah,” he agreed. “We were all a lot fitter in those days.”

“You okay to drive?” Callen asked Bet as she stood and stretched.

“I’m fine,” she said with a smile, obviously pleased by his concern. Over the last few hours, Sam had seen her attitude towards him completely change and he was happy to see it.

“Alright, well why don’t I see if I can get an appointment for us with someone at Seal Beach tomorrow?” Sam suggested. “We all deserve the morning off after this.”

“Sounds good,” Tom agreed.

“You want us all to go?” Bet sounded doubtful and Sam could see Callen looked skeptical as well.

“Yes,” Sam told them firmly. “Callen has to be there because he did the majority of the investigative work and you two need to be there as heads of your respective departments.”

“Alright then,” Bet conceded with a nod. Sam took it. He’d work on Callen later in private.

After that it was a flurry of goodbyes and then Sam was locking the door and setting the alarm behind the two of them. When he turned around, Callen was carrying their glasses back to the kitchen.

“Leave that,” Sam said, as he headed over to his lover.

“Sam?” Callen looked surprised, probably used to how clean and neat Sam liked everything to be.

Sam drew him forward for a kiss and Callen quickly melted into his arms. Sam rubbed his back and felt the other man relax into his body.

“You did good G,” Sam told him quietly.

Callen sighed, but didn’t say anything, so Sam kept up the gentle strokes across his back for a while longer, feeling the tension gradually leave Callen’s muscles. Then he slowly moved away and looked into Callen’s face. 

“Let’s get some sleep,” he suggested quietly.

“Okay,” Callen agreed equally quietly. 

He’d settled quickly into a pattern of sleeping for several hours a night next to Sam, then getting up in the early hours for a while, before gravitating back to bed with Sam for a little bit longer until it was time for them to go to work. Sam was hoping to get him to the point of staying next to Sam all night, but it had only been a couple of weeks, so he knew he needed to be patient. 

*

Sam wasn’t able to get them an appointment with NCIS for a couple of days, so Callen spent the time going over all their evidence and putting it into a coherent presentation, until he was sure it would stand up to scrutiny. He also created a list of possible questions, based on his perception of any flaws or weaknesses in the evidence. He could tell Sam was a little frustrated with him, but found it impossible to let go of his nerves about the upcoming meeting.

The night before the meeting, Sam did his best to wear Callen out, to ensure he slept properly. Callen still found himself awake way too early though and slipped carefully from bed to go into the living area, where he opened his laptop, needing to go over everything one more time.

“G,” Sam’s grumpy voice got his attention some time later and he looked up.

Sam was standing by the couch and his expression matched his tone of voice. Callen winced.

“Sorry,” he muttered, looking down at the laptop again, feeling like a sullen teenager being chastised by an angry social worker, as he had been so often in his childhood.

Sam came and sat beside him. “Hey,” he nudged Callen’s shoulder until he looked round. “It’ll be okay,” Sam told him, sounding softer and more sympathetic this time.

Callen frowned, not wanting to be humored by the other man. Sam reached out and closed the laptop lid, before taking Callen’s hand.

“Guess I need to work harder to wear you out properly,” he said in a lighter tone.

Callen managed to smirk at him. “Guess I’m more high maintenance than you’re used to,” he admitted.

Sam smiled back. “You’re worth the time and effort G,” he said, this time making Callen blush, not used to anyone caring enough to put in the work with him.

When Sam tugged on his hand, Callen allowed himself to be pulled from the couch and led back to bed. Anything was better than sitting and brooding by himself over whether he was good enough or not. 

*

Sam drove them to the meeting the next day, keeping one hand on Callen’s as much as possible, trying to keep him relaxed. They met Tom and Bet in the parking lot, before going inside together. The agent who was taking the meeting didn’t keep them waiting and soon, Callen was setting up his laptop and handing over the printed copies of all his evidence. He and Sam went through the presentation together, with Bet and Tom occasionally adding comments. The agent watched in silence to the end, neutral expression in place. Callen couldn’t tell what she was thinking or whether she believed what she was being told.

Once they were done, she maintained the neutral look through a series of questions. Callen was grateful he’d managed to anticipate everything that might come up and had all the evidence needed to respond to the weaknesses in what he’d found. Finally, the agent had no more questions.

“Very impressive lady and gentlemen,” she said, leaning back in her chair and relaxing.

Callen remained guarded, not sure how she was going to respond. Sam’s hand on his thigh under the table was a reassuring weight.

“Do you mind if I call someone else in?” the agent asked.

Sam shook his head. “Whatever you need,” he said.

The agent went out the room, returning with an older guy before they had a chance to do more than exchange glances.

“This is Assistant Director Granger,” the female agent explained.

He nodded, without offering to shake hands with any of them.

“Assistant Director?” Bet was the first to ask the question.

“That’s right,” Granger agreed. “Agent Macy asked me to observe this meeting when you requested it.”

“Why?” Tom’s voice was sharp as he asked the follow up.

“Because we’ve been aware of something going on at your company for a while now as well,” Granger explained. “We were planning on coming to you to discuss an operation to try and uncover the truth, not expecting you to set up your own investigation. But we agreed to wait and see what you found before approaching you.”

Callen could almost feel Sam vibrating next to him and knew he wasn’t happy with Granger’s revelation. He slid his hand into Sam’s where it still rested on his leg and squeezed. Sam returned the squeeze with interest and Callen forced himself not to wince as his fingers were crushed. After a few seconds though, the pressure let up again and Sam’s knee bumped his gently.

“So now what?” Callen asked, finding his voice, knowing that Sam was too angry to speak for the moment.

“Now we need to lay a trap to catch these two in the act and arrest them,” Granger said.

“And just how do you plan to do that?” Bet asked and Callen was grateful for her cut glass accent at that point. It allowed her to convey ice in her tone as she stared down Granger.

“Agent Macy will discuss that with you,” Granger said dismissively. “But thank you for bringing this to our attention.” He started to turn away, then paused. “By the way Mr Callen good work. If you want a career change, NCIS would be glad to have someone of your calibre working for the benefit of all our sailors.”

Callen sneered at him. “Not interested,” he said. “I’m happy with the career I have.”

Granger raised an eyebrow at his insolent tone, but didn’t respond further, just walked back out the office again. Sam squeezed his hand again, more gently this time, then let go.

“So how do we do this?” he asked, turning to Agent Macy.

Callen leaned back in his chair, feeling shaky. He was glad Granger was gone, the other man had made him horribly uncomfortable and his superior attitude had been very unpleasant. Sam seemed happier with him out of the room as well. 

*

Two weeks later, it was finally over. Agent Macy’s team had arrested the two traitors that morning and taken them away for questioning. Callen was back at Sam’s condo with Tom and Bet, the four of them celebrating the end of the investigation. This time, they were all drinking the bottle of champagne Sam had provided from his collection.

“A toast,” Bet said, raising her glass. The others looked at her in surprise, but followed suit. “To G Callen, an excellent investigator and great friend.”

“To Callen.” “To G.” Tom and Sam echoed the toast and they all clinked glasses. Callen felt himself blush, but managed a smile, as they all sipped their drinks.

“So what are you going to do now?” Tom asked Callen, as they all reached for some of the snacks Sam had laid out for them.

Callen shook his head and shrugged. “I don’t know,” he said.

“You could consider what that Granger guy offered,” Bet suggested.

Callen snorted loudly at that. “No chance,” he said firmly.

“Why not?” Bet was persistent.

“Do you really see G as a federal agent?” Sam asked with a chuckle.

Bet gave him a long look and Callen fought the urge to squirm. “No I guess not,” she finally agreed.

“Thank you,” Callen said fervently. “Offices and rules and regulations are not my thing. Besides, I tried it once,” he added casually.

Sam started in surprise next to him and Tom and Bet both looked intrigued. “You hadn’t mentioned that,” Sam said, his casual tone falling far short of Callen’s own.

Callen put his glass down with a sigh. “It was a million miles and a lifetime ago,” he said, feeling the need to get the story out there with these people, realizing he trusted all of them, not just Sam.

“So what happened?” He wasn’t surprised Bet was the one to ask. She had been curious about him and his past from the start, in a way Sam never had been.

Callen took a deep breath and Sam put his arm around him in a comforting gesture. “You don’t have to tell us G,” he said and Callen could see the glare he aimed in Bet’s direction.

“Not really a lot to tell,” Callen said, trying to keep up the casual act, but knowing he was failing, as the memories came back to him. “I applied to the FBI, went through their training, lasted about two weeks on the job.”

“What went wrong?” This time Tom was the one asking the question, quiet but sincere and Callen looked at him, seeing sympathy and understanding in his gaze.

Callen reached for his glass again, needing the alcohol to steady his nerves. “I can’t tell you most of it,” he said. “It’s classified. Suffice to say an undercover operation went wrong and two agents were among the dead.”

Sam was a warm presence at his side. “What about you?” he asked.

Callen glanced sideways at him. “What about me?” he asked back.

“There’s more you’re not saying,” Sam observed.

Callen sighed again and settled more firmly against Sam, wanting the comfort of his presence rather than the empty heat of the alcohol. Sam’s arm tightened around him and it was enough for him to explain the rest.

“One of the agents was a traitor,” he said quietly. “When I made him, there was a shootout. He didn’t survive, nor did his partner, who was clean. I got shot as well before back up were able to get in and neutralize the bad guys.”

“Your scars,” Sam guessed and Callen knew he was referring to the handful of marks he still carried as legacy of that failed operation.

“Yeah,” he agreed.

“How many?” Bet asked, sounding horrified.

“Five,” Sam told her and she made a noise at that. Callen looked up to see tears in her eyes.

“I’m okay,” he said. “Obviously. It was awful at the time, but I got through it. It was the end of my short-lived FBI career though and I swore that I was done with that sort of life.”

“Here’s to surviving,” Tom said and Callen gave him a grateful look. He knew the bare details of what had happened to Tom thanks to Sam and knew he’d been lucky by comparison.

“Survival,” Sam agreed and they all drank more champagne.

“How about you order us some real food?” Bet suggested as she put her empty glass down. “And some beer as well.”

“Sounds good to me,” Tom agreed, emptying his champagne glass as well.

“G?” Sam asked.

Callen smiled at him. “Pizza and beer sounds good to me,” he said.

“Alright then, someone pass me the phone,” Sam said. “And Tom find us something decent to watch.”

Bet protested at that, but Tom just laughed as he grabbed Sam’s TV remote. Callen didn’t mind when Sam shifted away from him. He felt better for having told the others the story and felt a new closeness towards them. Whatever he did decide to do next, he knew that he could count on more than just Sam’s support in the future and that was a good thing.


End file.
